Bunyaville Conservation Park

Bunyaville Conservation Park is a block of dry eucalypt forest at Everton Hills, about 15 km northwest of the Brisbane CBD, and one of the few Queensland conservation parks where dogs are allowed at all. The permission comes with a hard line: dogs belong on the shared trails and designated walking tracks, and are not permitted on the mountain bike trails.

The walk

The circuit most people do links Ring Road and Bunker Road for about 5.6 km, graded moderate and timed around an hour and a half. These are wide forestry-style tracks with steady undulation rather than real climbs, running under open eucalypt canopy. The network is larger than the loop, so you can stretch it out or cut it short at most junctions.

Leash status

The Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service manages Bunyaville, and its position is specific: dogs on leads are permitted along the shared trails and designated walking tracks only, and waste must be bagged and carried out. The marked bike trails cross and parallel the walking network in places, and a leashed dog on a fast bike line is a collision waiting to happen, so the junction signs are worth reading.

Max: learn the sign before you need it. Where a walking track meets a bike trail the change is marked and easy to miss at walking pace, and the first warning otherwise is a rider already committed to the corner.

Water

Carry your own, for both of you. Drinking water is not provided in the park, and there is no creek worth calling a swimming spot. The forest reads as shady but lets a lot of light through, which is what catches people out in a Brisbane summer.

Hazards

The park lists ticks, snakes, heat and mountain bike riders among the things to plan for. Ticks are the one dog owners underestimate, so check ears, armpits and between the toes back at the car. Heat matters from October through March, because the open canopy offers less shade than it appears to.

Getting there

The main entry and day-use area sit off Old Northern Road at Everton Hills, with parking, picnic tables and toilets. The gate is open 6am to 6.30pm and locked outside those hours, so plan around the afternoon lock. Buses run along Old Northern Road with a stop near Hamilton Road and a short walk in.

Make a day of it

The closest place to let the lead off is the Sylvia Gibbs Park Fenced Dog Park, with the Bleakley Park Fenced Dog Park a few minutes further. For coffee afterwards, Deja Bru Cafe at McDowall and Molten Toffee at Albany Creek are the near ones.

When to go

Winter, comfortably: from April to September any morning works. In summer, be finished by eight. Koalas do use the park and are occasionally spotted from the tracks, and weekday mornings leave long stretches to yourself before the weekend crowd arrives.

More options are on the Queensland trails guide and the Everton Hills destination page.